Traveling work table



Feb. 16, 1937. H. A. GREEN I 20,269

TRAVELING WORK TABLE Original Filed Dec. 30, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 &

INVENTOR fi/dl'l'7 d 61?;

ATTORNEY Feb. 16, 1937. H. A. GREEN TRAVELING WORK TABLE Original FiledDec. 30, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Her/7.46M ATTORNETY Feb. 16,1937. H. A. GREEN TRAVELING WORK TABLE Original Filed Dec. 30, 1931 3Sheets-Sheet 3 hull-2 1 Reissued Feb. 16, 1937 UNITED STATES TRAVELINGWORK TABLE Harry A. Green, Portland, Oreg.

Original N0. 1,928,334,

dated October 3, 1933,

Serial No. 583,901, December 30, 1931. Application for reissue April 6,1935, Serial No.

4 Claims.

My invention relates to traveling work tables and the like.

In the assembling of articles of manufacture, for example furniture, ithas been found most efiicientand economical to place the work on a,carrier mounted on an endless conveyor by which the steps in the workare distributed over a number of successive stations, at each of which aworkman is stationed, to perform a particular part of the work, and bythe time the carrier has reached the end of its travel, the article hasbeen completely assembled and finished, ready for'the market.

In the manufacture of furniture, as mentioned, there is not only theassembling of the sections of the frame to be done, but also varnishingand finishing; and in the case of chairs, davenports, couches and thelike, the upholstering of them.

Furthermore, I have found in the use or such conveyors, that in orderfor the workmen to perform their work with the greatest facility, meansmust be provided for giving them reach access to all sides of the workwithout moving from their places; and in the varnishing and finishing ofthe furniture, to support the article in a suitable position, givingaccess to all the surfaces without having to hold the article or touchthe surfaces freshly varnished.

The object of my invention is to provide an endless conveyor on whichare mounted rotatable workholding tables, adapted to permit the workmanto move the work before him into all desired positions facilitating hiswork, without moving from his place.

Y A further object of my invention is to provide an endless conveyor onwhich are mounted rotatable workholding tables, the spacing of which arereadily adjustable, in accordance with the time estimated necessary foreach man to complete his portion of the work.

A further object of my invention is to provide a conveyor, theworkholding tables of which are provided with work supporting means forarticles of different dimensions, and for holding the work in differentpositions as it is carried forward by the conveyor.

A further object is to provide simple, but efficient driving means foran endless conveyor of the character described, even several thousandfeet in length and operating over a tortuous path; to require but aminimum of power for the operation of the conveyor.

These and other features of my invention, the details of constructionand mode of operation are hereinafter described with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 shows a diagrammatic plan view of my conveyor and illustrates therelative spacing of the work carrier and the revoluble work tablescarried thereby;

Fig. 2 shows a section taken on the line 22 of Fig. l and illustratesthe construction and arrangement of the driving means;

Fig. 3 shows a fragmentary enlarged view of one of the work carriers andillustrates the revolvable work table mounted upon it;

Fig. 4 shows alongitudinal section of the same and illustrates how thework table is revolubly mounted thereon;

Fig. 5 shows a fragmentary end view of a work carrier as illustrated inFig. 3;

Fig. 6 shows a perspective view of the revolvable work table andillustrates an article of furniture secured thereto in an uprightposition;

Fig. 7 shows an enlarged fragmentary plan view of my conveyor andillustrates the construction and operation at the turns;

Fig. 3 shows a fragmentary elevation of the same, as shownv in Fig. '7;

Fig. 9 shows a fragmentary longitudinal section taken onthe line 9-9 ofFig. 7; and

Fig. 10 shows a section taken on the line I0I0 of Fig. 9.

Referring to the drawings: My conveyor, see Fig. 1, comprises channeltracks a arranged in a more or less tortuous path in order to providemaximum length withina room of given dimensions. A number of workcarriers b are provided comprising a base 0, see Fig. 4, havingcaster-like rollers d at each corner which ride in said tracks a.

A revoluble work table 2 is mounted on the base 0 on a centrallyarranged vertical shaft 3 so that the work placed thereon may be turnedto permit the workman to conveniently reach all sides of it.

The table 2 may or may not be provided with longitudinally arrangedelongated slots 4, having grooves in their sides in which elongatedsections 6, having complementary tongues are slidably mounted asillustrated in Figures 3 and 4. The sections 6 on the table 2 areprovided with a plurality of series of holes 8 adapted toreceive' pins,not shown, which may be provided in the legs of a piece of furniture,for holding, as illustrated in Figure 6, one end of a bedstead a:upright while being varnished or the like. These series of holes providemeans for securing work elements of various sizes and lengths to thework table 2.

Although I have shown the table 2 formed with extensible members adaptedto support relatively large pieces of furniture, it is to be understoodthat these extensible members may be dispensed with by merely providingtables of greater length than those illustrated. The longer tables thusprovided may be of suflicient length to support the larger pieces offurniture which would otherwise have to be supported by extensiblemembers on the short tables.

Sheaves e mounted on vertical shafts f journaled in standards I areprovided at the turns of the track a over which an endless cable 9 iscarried. The sheaves e located at the 180 degree turn of the track a,see Fig. 9, are adjustable longitudinally of the cable to permit thesame to be tightened, by providing their standards I! with transverseangle irons h which extend beyond the sides of the standards and restupon parallel longitudinally arranged members i. An adjusting screw k isrotatably mounted in an angle iron section I secured to the floor and isthreaded into the adjacent angle iron h. The outer rail portion of thetrack a at such turns is supported on the standards 12 and is movablewith the sheaves, slip joints as a. being provided for this purpose.

The bases c of the work carrier b are attached to the cable g by tonguesIll, pivotally connected to the forward end of the base 0, as at I l,and to the cable g by a clamping member l2 which permits a limited freemovement of the tongue relatively to the cable on the turns. By thesemeans the work carrier 17 may be adjusted on the cable g to provide anydesired spacing the class of work being done may require.

The sheaves e are of substantial diameter, approximately 6 feet in orderto provide low degree curves at the turns, thus reducing resistance tothe operation of the conveyor by reducing the bending strains on thecable g. Such low degree curves also permit the work carriers to passthe curves without danger of being thrown from the tracks a.

The caster-like roller 1% of the work table units 1) rides in the tracksa, as mentioned, but at the turns the inner track a is displaced by theupper surfaces of the sheaves e which are provided with wear plate p, sothat the rollers 41. at the beginning of the turn ride off the ends ofthe track onto the said wear plate, see Fig. '7, and at the end of theturn the inner rollers are brought into alignment again with the innertrack by the outer rollers, which remain in the outer track, and thusride oil the surface of the sheave onto the inner track again.

The cable 9 is driven in the direction of the arrows in Fig. 1 by asuitable motor 20 and transmission 2 l, which drives a worm 22 meshingwith a worm gear 23 mounted on the shaft 24 of a conveniently locateddouble sheave, as e.

Driving force from the sheave e is also transmitted to a convenientlylocated double sheave e2, more or less centrally disposed of theconveyor, relatively to the sheave e so as to distribute the drivingforce and relieve the strain upon the cable g to which it would besubjected, were it only driven from the one as sheave e. To this end thesheave e also has passed around it a cable 1', which is in turn passedaround the sheave e2. A tightener member s is provided for the cable 1.

The work table units bare thus driven about the circuit of the tracks aat a predetermined speed, slow enough to permit each workman to performhis task. The work table 0 being revoluble, each workman may turn thework to bring it into the most convenient position, and in the case of aworkman whose task normally consumes more time than some of the others,he is given suflicient space to take several steps laterally as the workmoves before him.

I claim:

1. In a traveling endless conveyor a series of individual work carriers,9. revoluble work table mounted on each carrier, said table providedwith longitudinally extensible members adapted to have the work securedthereto.

2. In. a traveling endless conveyor a series of individual workcarriers, a revoluble work table mounted on each carrier, said tableprovided with longitudinal slots, members slidably mounted in said slotsand provided with means forbeing secured to the work.

3. In a traveling endless conveyor a series of individual work carriers,each work carrier provided with a centrally located pivot post, a worktable revolubly mounted on said post, said table provided withlongitudinal slots, members slidably mounted in said slots and providedwith means for being secured to the work.

4. In an endless conveyor having a trackway and a running cable, thecombination of a plurality of cars movably mounted on the trackway andoperatively and adjustably interconnected with said cable, a work tablerotatably mounted on each of said cars, said work table adapted to befreely rotated in any direction by an operator and having a plurality ofseries of holes for fixing work elements of various sizes to said Worktable.

HARRY A. GREEN.

